Initial Interview
- Tell me about yourself.
This question is usually the opening ice-breaker. Take this time to highlight your accomplishments,
strengths and previous job experience, while also mapping them to some of the specific desired
qualifications outlined in the job description.
Be professional, but also show some personality. Beyond your experience and skills, interviewers are also
trying to determine if you’ll be a good cultural fit. Your answer should be something like:
-Why did you leave your last job?
Honesty is definitely the best policy here, but avoid disparaging your former employer. Some great
responses could be:
- Why do you want to work for our company?
Interviewers want to understand your career intentions, as well as know if you’ve done your company
research. Share something you’ve learned about the company’s mission, values or reputation, and tell
interviewers why it’s important to you. Your response could sound something like this:
- What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Once again, match your strengths to the preferred skills and qualifications in the job description to
reinforce that you’re a strong candidate. When it comes to weaknesses, look for ways to turn them into
strengths. For example, you might say:
-What questions do you have for us?
This question not only gives you the opportunity to learn more about the position and the company, but
also the ability to promote your skills and desire to become a part of the team.
Compile a few questions while doing your company research. Some questions you may want to ask, as
well as some potential follow up responses, are:
- Why do you want to work in a call center?
Illustrate your knowledge of a call center’s atmosphere and the unique demands you’ll face in the
position. For example, you could say:
- What is your idea of quality customer service?
Interviewers want to know what you think quality customer service is and how you would deliver it. Your response
could sound something like this:
- How would you handle a call from an angry customer?
Angry customer calls are a reality for any call center. Tell interviewers the steps you would take to de-escalate the situation and solve the
problem. Be detailed in your response and emphasize that staying calm and empathetic during the call will be key to coming up with a solution
the customer will be happy with. For example, you might answer:
-Are you able to work with multiple phone lines?
If you have previous call center experience, answering yes to this question should be easy. In addition, tell interviewers how many calls you
handled during a typical day. For those without previous experience, highlight other positions that required multi-tasking skills. A response might
be:
-Why should we hire you?
This question is a chance to display how your talents can fit well in the job role and the organization. Make sure you
explain how different attributes of yours match with the job requirements and the company culture.
-What are your major strengths and weaknesses?
The only way to prepare for this question is to genuinely introspect and discover your strengths and weaknesses that
have some relevance in the professional context. With weaknesses, you should try and be as genuine as possible as
long as you talk about what you have done to overcome them.
-What are your salary expectations?
A standard answer to this question if you’re a fresher is to say that you want to be paid as per industry standards. It
would be a good idea to go through the Monster Salary Index to negotiate your salary expectations.
If you’re experienced, then a 20-30% hike on your current salary is the norm. You may choose to mention your
expectations based on the market demand for your skills. Again, some research can really help with this.
Final Interview
1. What do you consider as your strengths and weaknesses?
2. How do you deal with stress?
3. How does your attendance describe you?
4. Do you know what the call center industry is all about?
5. Can you work on weekends/Shifting schedules/Do overtime work/Graveyard shifts?
